We've seen sci-fi scenes like these in movies: R2-D2 in *Star Wars* can converse fluently with humans, skillfully use tools, and is a master hacker; the robots in *Transformers*, whether in humanoid form or transformed into self-driving cars, drones, or robotic dogs, can think autonomously and act flexibly. These breathtaking images are closely related to a hot concept this year—"Physical AI." Last January, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang first proposed the concept of "Physical AI" at CES, regarding it as the last wave of AI development. Tesla, in its "Secret Plans, Chapter 4," shifted its focus entirely to AI and robotics, attempting to integrate AI into the physical world on a large scale. Physical AI means that AI no longer "lives" in the digital world, but rather perceives the real physical world in real time, makes inferences and decisions based on its own understanding, and provides feedback and operations in a way that conforms to physical laws. For example, a self-driving car turns according to traffic lights; a humanoid robot gently lifts a balloon; a robotic dog judges the timing of a jump based on the height of an obstacle. Building on this foundation, DePAI (Decentralized Physical AI) has begun to attract attention. It attempts to combine blockchain with physical AI, enabling AI-enabled robots, drones, and self-driving cars to operate autonomously on decentralized networks, rather than being controlled by a single company. The natural synergy between blockchain technology and physical AI makes DePAI an inevitable trend in industry development. DePAI is essentially decentralization (blockchain) plus physical AI, representing a fundamental paradigm shift in traditional physical AI in terms of management mechanisms, operating models, and revenue distribution. Under this new paradigm, machines are no longer seen as corporate assets but as part of a broader shared infrastructure, thus achieving autonomous operation. The above content is excerpted from Web3Caff Research's "DePAI Track 29,000-Word Research Report: Towards the Ultimate Development Direction of AI, Can It Become Web3's Next Trillion-Dollar Growth Engine? A Panoramic Analysis of Its Technological Foundation, Ecosystem Layers, Application Scenarios, Representative Projects, Risks and Challenges, and Future Potential" Click to view the full version 👇